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What happens when a neighbor abandons their house, there is a foreclosure, or
absentee landlord, who neglect to cut grass or allow weeds to go out of control. A
growing problem with recent heavy rain plus houses which are empty. Currently
the City will make every effort to contact the property owner to correct the
problem then issue a fine to a property owner who fails to comply. The City is not
interested in collecting fines and would much prefer compliance with existing
ordnances rather than going to court.

If the property owner cannot be located, city crews will trim the lot and place a
lien on the property.
Currently, about 55 properties are on the City's list to cut weeds and grass.

All this can devalue a neighborhood when a house becomes abandoned for
whatever reason.

Currently, Ashland offers free recycling to residents who wish to
drop off items at various locations. Ashland is contemplating a
voluntary curb-side recycling program to residents at a fixed cost to
be added to your water bill. Under the current proposal, this will
eliminate the drop off dumpsters.

I favor keeping some or all the drop off locations because some will
not be able to afford the added fee to the water bill, some live in
apartments and wish to recycle.

The city commission recently voted to restrict door to door
sales during non daylight hours. This was sparked by a
company going door to door after dark trying to sell burglar
alarm and security systems while telling residents that they
live in “a high crime area.”

The ordnance in no way will impact trick or treat activities
or non-profit groups such as school sales items.

Never tell a salesperson you are home alone.

The City of Ashland recently applied for and received a grant to install
security cameras at Scope Towers. Scope Towers is the retirement high
rise at 3100 Winchester. Some 60+ closed circuit cameras are installed
and fully operating to provide additional security to residents.

Police have already used images for successful prosection.

The City of Ashland and Catlettsburg have teamed
up to apply for and receive a grant from the
Kentucky department of Transportation for traffic
enforcement and education. The overall goal is to
reduce accidents.

Moreover, the two cities continue to work together
to obtain any available grants.

For the year 2011, Ashland Police had zero workers' compensation claims.
This is unheard of in today's policing. Tragically, 173 officers died in the
line of duty, up 13 percent from 153 the year before, according to numbers
compiled by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

Ashland Police receive 18 weeks of intense basic training after
employment and each police officer receives a minimum of 40 hours
training each year. Many receive more than 40 hours training annually.

Lack of injury of APD s likely because of officer skill, training, and a health
awareness program which began several years ago.

Ashland Police responded to just over 25,000 calls in 2011.

Ashland Fire Dept. Gets Upgrade

Ashland Fire Department recently was upgraded from Class 4 to Class 3 by
the Insurance Service Organization (ISO). ISO is an independent group that
classifies fire departments based on a 1 to 10 scale with one being the best.
Only 39 fire departments in Kentucky have a Class 3 rating.

The rating is based on a number of factors such as water pressure, type and
condition of equipment, staffing, training, and other factors.

This should have a positive impact on fire insurance. Insurance cost are
based on ISO classification, market conditions, and more but the ISO rating
of a community is an important component.